Seagrass-Watch Magazine Issue 47 - March 2013 | Page 22

THE WAKATOBI NATIONAL PARK (WNP)
in Indonesia is situated within of one of the
Wakatobi
world's recognised centres of biological
diversity. It is known in particular for its coral
reef diversity and contains an estimated
2
coral reef area of 600 km ; however, it also
houses exceptional mangrove and seagrass
habitats with high conservation value. These habitats provide
vital resources for local communities. In recent years the marine
ecosystems in the region have been regarded as relatively
“healthy”, however, concern is growing over the rapid
deterioration of some of the more accessible areas of reef,
mangrove and seagrass meadows. The major drivers of change,
degradation and loss are human related. Similar to other coral
reefs, seagrasses and mangroves worldwide, these habitats in the
Wakatobi are being degraded or destroyed by human activities
with more damage predicted as human populations increase and
economic activities intensify correspondingly.
Seagrass meadows are extensive throughout the Wakatobi,
some stretching for several kilometres, they are also highly
productive and an important source of carbon for adjacent
systems. Seagrass meadows in this region provide vital
ecosystem goods and services with high economic importance;
these include the provision of critical habitat for many subsistence
as well as commercially and recreationally important fish and
invertebrate species, and the provision of habitat for endangered
dugong and green turtle. Seagrass meadows are not just
important on their own but as part of a connected seascape. The
presence of seagrass, coral reef and mangrove habitats in
continuum within the tropical coastal ecosystem of this region,
supports significantly higher densities of fish, including important
commercial species', than a system missing any of these
component habitat types.
Within the Wakatobi, there are two very distinct cultures:
Islanders (known locally as Pulo) and traditionally nomadic sea
people (known locally as Bajo) who now live in permanent
houses on stilts over the intertidal seagrass meadows. The Bajo,
sometimes known as the Bajau Laut, were the largest and most
widely dispersed group of sea nomads in Southeast Asia and
were traditionally entirely dependent on the marine environment
for food, raw materials, livelihoods and their homes. A forced
shift from traditional nomadic lifestyles to a more sedentary
lifestyle meant that Bajo peoples developed semi-permanent
settlements in the shallow intertidal or subtidal areas in coastal
regions but they remain predominantly fishers and intertidal
gatherers. As such, the Bajo can supply high value items such as
sea cucumber, giant clam, top shell and live reef fish using highly
specialised techniques such as free-diving and spear fishing to
island dwelling communities.
For many people in the Wakatobi, gleaning in coastal areas
represents a source of livelihood, seagrass meadows in particular
represent a currently reliable resource when all other resources
are for whatever reason not accessible. Most gleaning activity
(82%) is conducted within the intertidal and shallow subtidal
seagrass meadows, but the role of this resource is changing
rapidly. A household survey in 2005 outlined gleaning (within
seagrass meadows) as a supplementary food source or
recreational activity, with no households stating any gleaning
products as their major of first choice food source. Conversely in
2012, several Bajo households suggested that seagrass gleaning
was far more important as a primary source of protein.
Furthermore, for the Bajo, seagrass meadows are seen as a 'back
up' livelihood that people can depend on to find food or a
guaranteed minimum daily income.
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Although the Bajo represent the majority of fisher